History of Adult Community Education in the 1980s - Joe DeGraaf

Community Based Education in the 1980s

Joe DeGraaf	Commented On: Wayne Tozzi, Michelle Hobby, Mishele Adams, Kim Clist

            The 1980s were a shifting point for both community education and the country. The United States elected Ronald Reagan as its 40^th president, bringing with him a new mindset for the country’s education reform. America still struggled with the Cold War and desegregation was yet to be realized as complete. The personal computer was introduced by IBM and women like Sandra Day O’Conner and Sally Ride broke through gender boundaries. It was a time of great controversy and change and education was not to be left out.

            Adult education in the 1980s was still developing as a formal system of education. The Adult Education Act, which was created in the 1960s, was amended in 1984 and reauthorized in 1988 (Rose, 1991, pg. 26). This reauthorization appropriated $200 million to adult education with a minimum of $250,000 to each state, substantially increasing the amount of federal funds available to adult educators (Rose, 1991, pg. 26). This re-appropriated money, though beneficial for some efforts in adult education, was also taken from the general community education allowance.

            The Reagan administration’s goals for education were to promote literacy while simultaneously cutting costs. Literacy was later defined by the National Literacy Act of 1991 as “an individual's ability to read, write, and speak in English, and compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society, to achieve one's goals, and develop one's knowledge and potential” (Irwin, 1991, pg. 7).

The administration determined to do this through the use of existing organizations, businesses, and industries where training and education could be provided with little or no cost to the federal government. This was amended, over time throughout the 1980s, to increase the definition of how volunteers were to be used and trained, as well as restrictions on how for-profit organizations could only use volunteers for supplementary purposes (Rose, 1991, pg. 27). This helped protect education from becoming a means for businesses to exploit learners as volunteer labor and to ensure quality education in all sectors.

            While adult education in a formal institutional setting received increased attention, community education at large was put under greater strain. With the additional focus on cutting costs, community education was left to fend for itself under the new regulations. Community education activities “slowed in the 1980s as college services came under closer scrutiny from external budget allocators, and grew again in the 1990s as college leaders continually sought new avenues for funding services to particular community groups” (Cohen, 1996, pg. 276).

            The 1980s also saw a move to the forefront of general education’s goals of “acquisition of general knowledge; achievement of some level of basic competencies; preparation of students for further, more advanced work; and the acquisition of skills and knowledge to live effectively in society” (Cross & Fideler, 1989, pg. 211). These goals would define what was thought of for adult education and how programs could serve the community.

            Community education, though temporarily slowed, saw significant development of its own. The 1980s brought a “new trend in community development, often referred to as community building or community (building) initiatives” (Van Der Veen, 2003, pg. 586). These programs provided adult education opportunities for job training, literacy, health education, cultural projects, and senior citizen activities (Van Der Veen, 2003, pg. 586). In keeping with formal education, community education and community colleges saw an increased focus on literacy, with 74% of community college administrators ranking “reading, writing, and mathematics competency” at high levels (Cross & Fideler, 1989, pg. 211).

            Community educators concentrated on the process of community development through various competency programs, seeking out ways to engage the community and to administer positive change. As stated by Boyer and Peltason in 1988, “The community college can take the lead in long-range planning for community development. And it can serve as the focal point for improving the quality of life in the inner city” (pg. 41). In the 1980s, this meant that "Community-based education was more related to community problem-solving activities” (Cohen, 1996, pg. 280). In addition, “Community education for development represents the how (practice and program) and the why (theory and principles) of teaching social and behavioral technology to community groups” (Brookfield, 1983, pg. 158). This focus on educational development, in turn, allowed communities and specific groups to be better suited toward problem solving and building a stronger overall community.

            More than this, the 1980s saw an important shift away from educational access toward quality standards. Education moved away from its emphasis on engaging as many individuals as possible to a focus on providing and evaluating quality programs and institutions. The main challenges that 1980s community educators faced were in “delineating roles in resolving the mission dilemma of community colleges, evaluating the quality and outcomes of their programs, and planning for the future” (Cross & Fideler, 1989, pg. 210). They had to determine what constituted a quality program and how best to apply it to their unique setting.

            Educators had different perspectives for improving the quality of education. For example, “The use of the cohort learning model began to be used more often during the 1980s as a response to pressure for reform of the educational system” (McCarthy, et al., 2005, pg. 23). This cohort model, where a group of students share the same classes, teachers, and activities (McCarthy, et al., 2005, pg. 22), was intended to encourage group interactions in a variety of formats, “such as accelerate classes, learning communities collaborative, and team learning” (Flynn & Benway, 2015, pg. 19).

            Constructivism, though begun in the 1970s, also continued to develop in the 1980s (Merriam and Brocket, 2007, pg. 46-47). Jean Piaget, who is regarded as a foundational figure by many constructivists, developed some of his themes during this time period (Phillips, 1995, pg. 6). Constructivist philosophy argued that “Knowledge is the meaning that people make out of their experiences” (Merriam & Brocket, 2007, pg. 46). For Piaget, learning takes place in a “cycle of interaction between the individual and the environment” (Kolb, 1984, pg. 23). Community educators, then, were seen as working within the environment to help educate the individuals of the community toward greater development and understanding of experience.

            Several individuals and organizations contributed to the growth of adult community education in the 1980s. David A. Kolb provided a focus on experiential learning (Kolb, 1984) while others like R. Freeman Butts focused on civic engagement and learning (Butts, 1980). In fact, many of those in education had their hand in the political sphere as part of their attempts to adjust to Reagan’s amendments to the Adult Education Act. The Northern Alameda Consortium for Adult Education (NACAE) was highly involved in lobbying the Reagan administration to adopt new and progressive changes, such as changing “bilingual education” to “English as a Second Language,” which was ultimately turned down (Rose, 1991, pg. 25). Their work, though only occasionally successful, helped project the future of adult education.

The 1981 nongovernmental Coalition for Literacy was also formed and “emphasized volunteer activities, publicity for literacy issues, response to public inquiries, and fund raising to support these activities” (Rose, 1991, pg. 25). This focus on literacy, adopted by the Reagan administration, was founded by E.D. Hirsch Jr. and pushed the country toward its quality over quantity focus (Hirsch, 1987). Moreover, literacy was the prime focus throughout the 1980s in education. Most efforts toward progress and change were driven by this theme as defined by the federal government.

Throughout the 1980s, community education moved forward in its efforts to provide personal and community development. Adult and community education continued to be defined and refined, taking its cues from pressures both within the government and without. The changes that were made to education have shaped how our system works and provide insight into ways that its lessons can be applied to today.

One of the major shifts in adult community education during the 1980s was its renewed emphasis on quality education. With the various cuts in funding for many programs and the high competition for federal funds necessary for sustaining growth, community organizations and colleges were forced to improve their programs. This has led us to today where the advent of proficiency scores and standardized testing rate how well a particular school is performing.

While there are arguments on both sides of the political fence about how these standards and testing methods affect education, the original intent may have been true. With the realization of inadequacy in adult literacy and the lack of quality programs to properly train individuals for careers and societal living, the 1980s saw a shift toward providing programs to counter these needs. Adult community education today can focus on providing programs with similar goals. It can understand the need for providing quality learning opportunities where communities need it.

Community educators should look to the needs of their communities and assess how to better serve and promote development. Whether it be economic development and training, arts education or literacy programs, each community must examine their areas of weakness and seek to address them with quality programs. Not only this, but community educators must look to grow community over time, to provide avenues for individuals to gain a sense of membership in the community, and to engage community members in face to face interactions (Conrad, 2005, pg. 17-18).

Each community will have its own demographics and methods to reach them. Cohort learning, developing in the 1980s, allows for a promising model for community education. Whether it is through in-person contact or through online interactions, communities can benefit from a cohort of learners who work through the issues facing their society. For learning in a cohort in today’s world, especially in the online format, educators must look to build community and personal connections between cohort members (Conrad, 2005, pg. 16). As society becomes more individualistic and distanced, it is the role of the educator to bring communities together and to collectively work toward both individual and community development.

Adult community educators can focus on the needs of the community by developing ways for individuals to adjust to new careers, receive training in skills that will promote individual and community growth, and encourage reinvestment in the community to further develop each program. As discovered in the 1980s, engagement with the business and industrial community is important in obtaining funding and experts in given fields. However, as also discovered in the 1980s, evaluation of these programs and specific structures must be put into place to prevent corruption and exploitation.

The 1980s saw many changes to the education system, both for communities and institutions. A shift toward improved quality and efficiency spurred educators to improve their programs and to seek out new and better ways to improve their communities. At the same time, they learned that evaluation of these programs was intricate and complex, unique to each community and its needs. There is much to be gleaned from this time period in both warnings and opportunities. Educators are now faced with decisions on how best to use the messages from history and to learn from their own communities along the way.

Areas	Summary
Introduction	1.      Reagan Administration 2.      Cold war, personal computers, gender boundaries challenged
Highlights	1.      Literacy and workplace literacy 2.      Quality over quantity 3.      Evaluation of programs
Influential Factors	1.      Re-appropriations of Adult Education Act and federal funds 2.      Inclusion of private sector business in funding and training 3.      David Kolb, R. Freeman Butts, E.D. Hirsch Jr., Jean Piaget 4.      NACAE and the nongovernmental Coalition for Literacy 5.      Cohort learning 6.      Constructivism
Implications	1.      Focus on improving quality of programs while maintaining access and proper evaluation 2.      Utilize the community to identify areas of weakness for improving quality 3.      Seek outside funding while maintaining evaluation and integrity

References

Boyer, E. L., & Peltason, J. W. (1988). Building communities: A vision for a new century (Report for the Commission on the Future of Community Colleges). American Association of Community and Junior Colleges.

Brookfield, S. (1983). Community adult education: A conceptual analysis. Adult Education Quarterly, 33(3), 154-160.

Butts, R. F. (1980). The revival of civic learning: A rationale for citizenship education in American schools. Bloomington, Ind.: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation.

Cohen, A. M., & Brawer, F. B. (1996). The American community college. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Conrad, D. (2005). Building and maintaining community in cohort-based online learning. Journal of Distance Education, 20(1), 1-20. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ807822.pdf

Cross, K. P., & Fideler, E. F. (1989). Community college missions: Priorities in the mid-1980s. The Journal of Higher Education, 60(2), 209. doi:10.2307/1982177

Flynn, B., & Benway, R. (2015). The life, death, and rebirth of the cohort. The Adult Higher Education Alliance, 18-22. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED562628.pdf#page=16

Hirsch, & J. (1987). Cultural literacy: What every American needs to know. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

McCarthy, J., Trenga, M. E., & Weiner, B. (2005). The cohort model with graduate student learners: Faculty-student perspectives. Adult Learning, 16(3-4), 22-25. doi:10.1177/104515950501600305

Phillips, D. C. (1995). The good, the bad, and the ugly: The many faces of constructivism. Educational Researcher, 24(7), 5. doi:10.2307/1177059

Rose, A. D. (1991). Ends or means: An overview of the history of the Adult Education Act. Center on Education and Training for Employment, 1-38. Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/AdultEd/anniv40/end-mean.pdf

Veen, R. V. (2003). Community development as citizen education. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 22(6), 580-596. doi:10.1080/0260137032000138149